Traditional view of Conflict

Interactionist view of conflict

The belief that conflict is not only a positive force in a group but also an absolute necessity for a group to perform effectively. Harmonious, peaceful, tranquil, and cooperative group is prone to becoming static, apathetic, and unresponsive to needs for change and innovation.

An increase in communication is functional

Structure includes

Variables such as size, degree of specialization in the tasks assigned to group members, jurisdictional clairty, member goals compatibiltiy leadership styles, reward systems and a the degree of dependence between groups.

Stage II is important because

Many conflicts are escalated

Because one party attributes the wrong intentions to the other. There is also typically a great deal of slippage between intentions and behavior does not always accurately reflect a persons intentions.

Competing

Collaborating

A situation in which the parties to a conflict each desire to satisfy fully the concerns of all parties. The parties intend to solve a problem by clarifying differences rather tahn by accommodating various points of view. "win win"

Avoiding

Accommodating

The willingness of one party to a conflict to place the opponent's interest above his or her own. A party who seeks to appease an opponent may be willing to place the opponent's interest above his or her own, sacrificing to maintain the relationship.

Altering the structural variables

Conflict Stimulation Techniques

Communication (using ambiguous or threatening messages to increase conflict levels.) Bringing in outsiders (Adding employees to a group whose backgrounds, values, attitudes or managerial styles differ from thjose of the present members.) Restructure the organization (Realigning work groups, altering rules and regulations, increasing interdependence and making similar structural changes to disrupt the status quo) Appointing a devil's advocate (Designating a critic to purposely argue against the majority positions held by the group.)

Conflict is constructive

When it improves the qualtiy of decisions, stimulates creativity and innovation, encourages interest and curiosity among group members, provides the medium through which problems can be aired and tensions released and fosters an environment of self-evaluation and change.

All forms of conflict even the functional varieties

If differences of opinion open up along demographic fault-lines

A high proportion of people who get to the top

Are conflict avoiders. They don't like hearing negatives; they don't like saying or thinking negative things. They frequently make it up the ladder in part because they don't irritate people on the way up.

One common ingredient in organizations

That successfully manage functional conflict is that they reward dissent and punish conflict avoiders. Often, we perceive that dissenters are slowing progress toward a goal which may be true, but in so doing they are asking the important questions about whether the goal is the right one to pursue.

Distributive Bargaining

Integrative Bargaining

Goal - Expand the pie so that both parties are satisfied - Motivation - win-win, Focus - Interest (Can you explain why this issue is so important to you? Information sharing - High (Sharing information will allow each party to find ways to satisfy interest of each party. Long term relationship.

Target Point

Resistance point

When you are engaged in distributive bargaining research consistently shows one of the best things you can do

Is make the first offer, and make it an aggressive one. Making the first offer shows power. Speak first at meetings and thereby gain the advantage. People tend to fixate on initial inforamtion. Once that anchoring point is set they fail to adequately adjust it based on subsequent information.

Compromise may be your worst enemy

In distributive negotiations it appears the

Negotiatiors in a position of power or equal status who show anger negotiate better outcomes because their anger induces concessions from their opponents. This appears to hold true even when the negotiators are instructed to show anger despite not being truly angry. Those with less power showing angryu leades to worse outcomes.

Mediator

Arbitrator

A third party to a negotiation who has the authority to dictate an agreement. Big plus over mediation is that it always results in a settlement. The conflict may resurfce at a later time if one party is very dissatisfied.

Consultant

An impartial third party skilled in conflict management who attempts to facilitate creative problem solving through communication analysis. Does not try to settle the issues but rather works to improve relationships between the conflicting parties so they can reach a settlement themselves.

Use competition when

Use collaboration

To find an integrative solution when both sets of concerns are too important to be compromised when your objective is to learn when you want to merge insights from people and different perspectives or gain commitiment by incorporating concerns into a consensus.

Use avoidance

When an issue is trivail or symptomatic of other issues when more important issues are pressing, when you perceive no change of satisfying your concerns when potential disruption outweighs the benefits of reasolution to let people cool down and regain perspective when gathering informaiton supersedes immediate decision and when others can resolve the conflict more effectively.

Use accomodation

When you find you're wrong and to allow a better position to be heard, to learn, to show your resasonableness when issues are more important to others than to yourself and to satisfy others and maintaining cooperation, to build social credits for later issues to minimize loss when you are outmatched and losing, when harmony and stability are especially important and to allow employees to develop by learning from mistakes.

Use compromise

When goals are important but not worth the effort of potential disruption of more assertive approaches when opponenents with equal power are committed to mutually exclusive goals, to achieve temporary settloements to complex issues, to arrive at expediant solutions under time pressure and as a backup when collaboration or competition is unsuccessful.

Distributive bargaining can

Integrative bargaining

Tends to provide outcomes that satisfy all parties and that build lasting relationships. When engaged in negotiation make sure you set aggressive goals and try to find creative ways to achieve the goals of both parties especially when you value the long-term relationship with the other party.

Organizational structure

Work Specialization

The degree to which tasks in an organization are subdivided into separate jobs. Henry Ford. Each worker was assigned a specific repetitive task such as putting on the right-front wheel. Question to answer: To what degree are activities subdivided into separate jobs? Increases efficiency and productivity by increasing the creation of special inventions and machinery. Can be carried too far.

Managers need to address

Six Key elements when they design their organization's structure. 1) Work specialization 2) departmentalization, 3) chain of command, 4) span of control 5) centralization and decentralization and 6) formalization.

Human diseconomies

Departmentalization

The basis by which jobs in an organization are grouped together. One of the most popular ways to group activities is by functions performed. Engineering, accounting, manufacturing, personnel and supply specialists.

Chain of Command

The unbroken line of authority that extends from the top of the organization to the lowest echelon and clarifies who reports to whom. It answers the question of, "Who do I go to if I have a question? and To whom am I responsible to?

Unity of Command

Departmentalization can be

By function, product, geography, customer or service the organization produces. Procter and Gamble places each major product such as
Tide, Pampers, Charmin and Pringles under an executive who has complete global responsibiltiy for it. It increases accountability for performance because it is under the direction of one manager.

Span of Control

The number of subordinates a manager can efficiently and effectively direct. All things being equal the wider or larger the span the more efficient the organization. If the average manager makes $50,000 a year the wider span will save 440 million a eyar in management salaries.

Centralization

The degree to which decision making is concentrated at a singel point in an organization. Top managers make all the decisions and lower-level managers merely carry out their directives. Formal authority.

Formalization

The degree to which jobs within an organization are standardized. There are explicit job descriptions, lots of organizational rules and clearly defined procedues covering work processes in organizaitons in whic there is high formalization.

Narrow Spans of Control

A mangaer can maintain close control but there are three major drawbacks. 1) They're expensive because they add levels of management. 2) They make vertical communciation in the organization more complex. The added levels of hierarchy slow down decision making and tend to isolate upper management. 3) Encourage overly tight supervision and discourage employee autonomy. The trent in recent years has been toward wider spans of control.

To ensure performance does not suffer with wider spans of control

Organizations have been investing heavily in employee training. Managers recognize they can handle a wider span when employees know their jobs inside and out and can turn to co-workers when they have a question.

Decentralization

Decisions are pushed down to the managers closest to the action. Can act more quickly to solve problems, more people provide input into decisions and employees are less likely to feel alienated from those who make decisions that affect their work lives. Trend is going to more decentralization because they can bde more flexible and responsive. They typically have more detailed knowledge about the problems.

Three of the more common organizational designs

Simple structure

An organization structure characterized by a low degree of departmentalization, wide spans of control, authority centralized in a single person and little formalization. It is a flat organization. One person at the top and then everyone else on the same line below. Small businesses where the manager and the owner are the same.

Simple Structure is Fast

Flexible and inexpensive to operate and accountability is clear. It becomes increasingly inadequate as an organization grows because its low formalization and high centralization tend to create information overload at the top. (approx. 50-100 people too many for this structure)

Standardization is the key concept that underlies

A bureaucracy is characterized by highly

Routine operating tasks achieved through specialization, very formalized rules and regulations, tasks grouped into function departments, centralized authority, narrow spans of control and decision making that folows the chain of command.

Primary strength of a bureaucracy

Its ability to perform standardized activities in a highly efficient manner. Results in economies of scale, minimum duplication of personnel and equipment and employees who have the opportunity to talk the same langugage among their peers. Can get by with less talented and less costly middle and lower level managers. Rules and regs substitute for managerial discretion.

Bureaucracy is efficient only as long as

Matrix Structure

An organization structure that creates dual lines of authority and combines functional and product departmentalization. Breaks the unity of command concept. Employees in the matrix have two bosses; their functional department managers and their product managers.

Matrix Structure

Similar to academic departments - accounting, decision and information systems, marketing are functional units. Overlaid on them are specific programs (products). A professor of accounting teaching an undergraduate course may report to the director of undergraduate programs as well as to the chairperson of the accounting department.

The strength of the matrix structure

Is its ability to faciliatate coordinattion when the organization has a number of complex and interdependent activities. Direct and frequent contacts between different specialties in the matrix con let information permeate the organization and more quickly reach the people who need it.

The matrix reduces

The Matrix disadvantages

Are it creates confusion and its propensity to foster power struggles and the stress it places on individuals. Reporting to more than one boss introduces role conflict and unclear espectations introduce role ambiguity.

Bureaucracy reduces the potential for

Virtual organization.

A small, core organization that outsources major business functions. Sometimes called network or modular organization. It is highly centralized with little or no departmentalization. Example - MGM vertically integrated corporations. Today most movies are made by a collection of individuals and small companies who come together and make films project by project. This structure form allows each project to be staffed with the talent best suited to its demands. Boeing outsourced 70% of the components for the new 787 Dreamliner passenger jet.

Virtual Organizations allow for maximum

Flexibility This allows individuals with an innovative idea and little money such as Ancle Hsu and David Ji to successfully compete against the likes of Sony, Hitachi and Sharp Electronics. Team members who are geographically dispersed and communicate only intermittently find it difficult to share information and kinowledge which can limit innovation and slow response time. Ironically some birtual organizations as less adaptable and innovative than those with well established communciation and collaboration networks.

Boundaryless Organization

An organization that seeks to eliminate the chain of command, have limitless spans of control and replace departments with empowered teams. By removing vertical boundaries, management flattens the hierarchy and minimizes status and rank.

Management can cut through horizontal barriers

Companies that downsize often see

Positive effects on stock prices after the announcement. Among companies that only cut employees but do not restructure, profits and stock prices usually delcine. Employees who remain often feel worried about future layoffs and may be less committe to the organizations.

Mechanistic Model

Organic Model -

A structure that is flat, uses cross-heirarchical and cross functional teams, has low formalization, possesses a comprehensive information network, and relies on participative decision making. Looks alot like the boundaryless organization.

Most current strategy frameworks focus on

Innovation strategy - Organic

A strategy that emphasizes the introduction of major new products and services. Innovative firms will use competitive pay and benefits to attract top candidatres and motivate employees to take risks. A loose structure, low specialization, low formalization and decentralization.

Nonroutine activities are

Environment

Institutions or forces outside an organization that potentially affect the organization's performance such as suppliers, customers, competitors, governemtn regulatory agencies and public pressure groups.

Volatility describes the degree of

Complexity is the degree of

Heterogenity and concentration among enviornmental elements. Tobacco industry is homogeneous and concentrated.Environments characterssized by heterogeneity and dispersion like the broadband industry are complex and diverse with numerous competitors.

The great conclusion - To maximize employee performance and job satisfaction

Bureaucratic structures still dominate

In many parts of Europe and Asia. One management expert argues that U.S. management often places too much emphasis on individual leadership, which may be jarring in countries where decision making is more decentralized.

Strategy, size, technology and environment

5S - Concept borrowed from Japanese manufacturer Kyocera.

Sorting. Going through all tools, materials, and supplies so as to keep only what is essential. Straightening - Arranging tools supplies, equipment and parts in a manner that promotes maximum efficienty. For every thing there should be a place, and every thing should be in its place. Shining. Systematic cleanin to make the workplace and work space as clean and neat as possible. At the end of the shift or workday, every thing is left as it was when the workday started. Standardardizing - Knowing exactly what your responsibiliters are to keep the first three S's Sustaining - Maintaining and reviewing the standards, rigorous review and inspection to ensure order does not slowly slip back into disorder or chaos.

A strong organizational culture

Provides stability to an organization. It's not for everyone. It refers to a system of shared meaning held by members that distinguishes the organization from other organizations. Innovation, Detail, orientation, agressiveness, stability.

Stability

Organizational culture

A system of shared meaning held by members that distinguishes the organization from other organizations. How employees perceive the characteristics of the organization's culture. - not with whether they like them. that is, it's a descriptive term.

Core Values

Strong culture

A culture in which the core values are intensely held and widely shared. The stronger the culture, the greater its influence on member behavior because the high degree of sharedness and intensity creates an internal climate of high behavioral control. (Nordstroms vs. Macy's) A strong culture reduces employee turnover because it demonstrates high agreement about what the organization represent. Builds cohesivness, loyalty and organizational commitment.

Should mulitinational corporations establish a single strong organizational culture across different nations or

Adopt different cultural practices in each country. Research suggests the best management practice is to develop a strong unifying mission, while allowing teams to accomplish their work in ways that suit each nation's culture.

Empowerment appeared more important in

Culture has a boundary defining role

It creates distinctions between one organization and others. It conveys a sense of identity for organization members and it facilitates the generation of commitment to something larger than individual self interest. It also enchances the stability of the social system.

Culture is a sense-making and

Culture by definition is elusive,

Intangible, implicit and taken for granted. but everyone organization develops a core set of assumptions, understandings and imploicit rules that govern day-to-day behavior in the workplace. Conformity to the rules becomes the primary basis for reward and pward mobility.

Whether the applicant's or employee's attitudes and behavior

Culture Creates

Organizational climate

The shared perceptions organizational members have about their organization and work environment. Psychological climate was strongly related to individuals level of job satisfaction, involvement, commitment, and motivation.

Institutionalization

A condition that occurs when an organization takes on a life of its own, apart from any of its members, and acquires immortality. Valued for itself and not for the goods and services it produces - it takes on a life of its own apart from its founders or members.

Behavior and habits that should be questiosed and

Consistency of behavior, an asset in a stable

Enviornment, may then burden the organization and make it difficult to respond to changes. Strong cultures worked well for them in the past but become barriers to change when "business as usual" is no longer effective.

Proactive people do a lot to

The merger of AOL and Time Warner was like

Founders traditionally have a major impact on an

Organization's early culture. They have a vision of what the organization should be. They hire employees who think like them, they socialize these people to think more like them and they encourage the people to think more like them in rewarding those who do.

Extrinsic rewards

Failing to praise can become a

Workplace Spirituality

The recognition that people have an inner life that nourishes and is nourished by meaningful work that takes place in the context of community. Starbucks paying third-world suppliers more. Helping people reach their full potential.

Initial Selection

Substantive Selection

Determine the most qualified applicants from among those who meet basic qualifications. - Written tests (intelligence or cognitive ability tests, personality tests, integrity tests and interest inventories), performance tests (best known are work samples and assessment centers), interviews. The heart of the selection process. 60% of employers use them in US

It's first Impressions

Interview effectiveness improves when employers use

Behavioral structured interviews, probably because these assessments are less influenced by a variety of interviewer biases. They require applicants to describe how they handled specific problems and situations in previous jobs based on the assumption that past behavior offers the best predictor of future behavior.

As organizations flatten their structures, expand their use of teams and break down traditional departmental barriers,

About 75% of employees working in the largest US corp.

Receive ethics training either during new employee orientation, as part of ongoing developmental programs or as periodic reinforcement of ethical principles. Jury is still out if you can actually "teach" ethics.

70% of workplace training takes place

Off the job training popular format is

Live classroom lectures. It also includes videotapes, public seminars, self-study programs, Internet courses, satellite-beamed television classes and group activities that use role-plays and case studies.

E-learning systems emphasize learner control

Computer based training that let learners

Actively participate in exercises and quizzes was more effective than traditional classroom instruction. However, it can be expensive and "clicking through" training without actually engaging in practice activities provides no assurance employees have actually learned anything.

Researchers now recognize types of behavior that constitute performance at work.

Task performance

Citizenship

Actions that contribute to the psychological environment of the organization, such as helping others when not required, supporting organizational objectives, treating co-workers with respect, making constructive suggestions and saying positive things about he workplace.

Counterproductivity

Performance evaluations

Serves a number of puposes. One is to help management make general human resource decisions about promotions, transfers, and terminations. Identify training and development needs. Provide feedback to employees on how the organization views their performance and are often the basis for reward allocations including merit pay increases.

Written Essays

Critical incidents

Graphic rating scales

An evaluation method in which the evaluator rates performance factors on an incremental scale. Quantity, quality, depth of knowledge, cooperation, attendance and initiative and rates each incrementally.

Why managers avoid evaluations of employees

An effective review in which the employee perceives

The appraisal as fair, the manager as sincere and the climate as constructive can leave the employee feeling upbeat, informed about areas needing improvement and determined to correct them. Should be a counseling activity more than a judgment process, best accomplished by allowing it to evolve from the employee's own self-evaluation.

It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most

Hindsight bias is a huge problem in understanding human and

Demise of Circuit City was due to

Choosing to locate its stores in areas where real estate was cheap. In 2007 it laid off 3400 of its most experience sales staff to control costs. The company saved money but it paid a heavy price to customer traffic and employee morale. In 2003 the firm eliminated its sales commission structure. Best employees left. And two things not in Circuit Cities control - Global recession - retailing struggled the most. Shut down Eddie Bauer, Sharper Image, Linen n Things or declared bankruptcy.

Textbook addresses change as an

Change Agents

Persons who act as catalysts and assume the responsibility for managing change activities. They see a future for the organization that others have not identified and they are able to motivate, invent and implement this vision.

Security

Economic Factors

Changes in job tasks or established work routines can arouse economic fears if people are concerned that they won't be able to perform the new tasks or routines to their previous standards, especially when pay is closely tied to productivity.

Selective information processing

Individuals are guilty of selectively processing information in order to keep thier perceptions intact. They hear what they want to hear, and they ignore information that challenges the world they've created.

Structural inertia

Organizations have built-in mechanisms such as their selection process and formalized regulations to produce stability. When an organization is confronted with change, this structural inertia acts as a counterbalance to sustain stability.

Research shows that companies with strong cultures excel in

Research on organizational change has shown that to be effective

Kotter's Model

Harvard Business School built on Lewin's model to create a more detailed approach for implementing change. 1) Establish sense of urgency 2) Form a coalition with enough power to lead teh change. 3) Create a new vision to direct the change and startegies for achieving the vision 4) Communicate it throughout the organization 5) Empoower others to act on the vision by rtemoving barriers to change and encouraging risk taking and creative problem solving 6) Pla for, create ,and reward shot term "wins" taht move the organization toward the new vision. 7) Consolidate improvements, reassesss changes, and make necessary adjustments in the new programs. 8) Reinforce the changes by demonstrating the relationship between new behaviors and organizationl success.

Action Research

A change process based on systematic collection of data and then selection of change action based on what the analyzed date indicate. Diagnosis, analysis, feedback, action and evaluation. Change agent often an outside consultant.

OD Techniques to bring about change.

Appreciative Inquiry

Instead of looking for problems to fix it seeks to identify the unique qualities and special strengths of the organization wihc members can build on to improve performance. Discovery, dreaming, design and destiny

Idea Champions. Extremely high self confidence, persistence, energy and tendecy to take risks. Inspire and energize others. Good at gaining a commitment from others.

Learning Organization

An organization that has developed the continuous capactiy to adapt and change. Shared vision, discard their old ways of thinking, look at organization as a system of interrelationships, open communication and people sublimate their personal self-interest and fragmented departmental interest to work together to achieve the organizations' shared vision.

Single loop learning

Double loop learning

How to make a "learning" organization

Establish a strategy to commit to change, innovation and continuous improvement. Redesign the organization's structure. The formal structure can be a serious impediment to learning. Flattening the structure, eliminating or combing departments and increasing the use of cross functional teams, reinforces interdependecne and reduces boundaries. Reshape the organization's culture. Be willing to reward taking risks.

Work for most people is the most important

Stress

A dynamic condition in which an individual is confronted with an opportunity, a demand, or a resource related to what the individual desires and for which the outcome is perceived to be both uncertain and important.

Physiological stress symptoms

Psychological Stress symptoms

Anxiety, depression, decrease in job satisfaction. Jobs that make mulitple and conflicting demands or that lack clarity about the incumbents' duties and authority and responsibiitlies incrase both stress and dissatisfaction.

Behavioral stress symptoms

Productivity, absenteeism and turnover. Changes in eating habits, increased smoking or consumption of alcohol, rapid speech, fidgeting and sleep disorders. Inverted "U" relationship between stress and job performance. The right amount of stress is optimal too little or too much creates diseconomies of work. Inverted U is not empirical.

To appraise the total amount of stress an individual is under,

An employee can take personal responsibility for reducing stress levels. Individual strategies that have proven effective include

Time management techniques, increased physical exercise, relations training and expanded social support networks. . Make daily lists of activities to be accomoplsihed. Prioritize activities by importance and urgency. Schedule activities according to the priorities set and knowing your daily cycle and handling the most demanding part of your job when you are most alert and productive.

Demands to work long hours lends to stress and this stress can be

Managers are the

****Current view is not the

Interactionist approach. Conflict is good to get things moving however once you start conflict you cannot easily predict what will happen. Most current approach. We manage conflict. If you can manage conflict at a low level you can resolve it easier. Manage it before it gets larger but do not stir it up.

Initial Seclection

Most employers want reference information

But few give it out because of litigations worries. Employee could come back to previous employer and do damage. Praise can get you into trouble as well if the employee does not perform well at the new job.